Advisory Board Member for A Family Foundation

Title: Advisory Board Member

Position Summary:

An Advisory Board member supports the Tomberg family’s organized grant making and activities related to communicating and soliciting appropriate philanthropic projects. She/He/They works with fellow Advisory Board members, the family representative(s), and intern(s) to execute the functions of the Advisory Board. The individual volunteer effort of the Advisory Board member is managed in coordination with the family representative on the Advisory Board and requires that the volunteer Advisory Board member be independently motivated to collaborate, communicate, and participate in the work of the Advisory Board. During the 12-month 2024-2025 grant cycle, Advisory Board members estimated that they each volunteered approximately 120 hours per year to this work with most of that time commitment occurring between the months of September and February.

Key Relationships

• Advisory Board Members
• Tomberg Family Representative(s)
• Tomberg Family Philanthropies Intern(s)

Other Interactions

• Grant recipients
• Grant seekers
• Tomberg Family Members
• Vendors and/or Consultants

Primary Volunteer Responsibilities

• Read, evaluate, prioritize, and recommend for the family’s review, Letters Of Inquiry and full proposals from grant seekers in accordance with the stated priorities, processes, and procedures of the Tomberg Family Philanthropies.
• Engage in and support the team building and process improvement work of the all-volunteer Advisory Board.
• Monitor and review grantee progress and activities through the reporting process and thoughtfully apply that evaluative information to continued and future funding requests.
• Support the family’s philanthropy by vetting and providing feedback on operations/marketing/communication/policy initiatives, as requested.
• Actively participate in meetings to accomplish stated agenda objectives.
• Proactively bring appropriate projects to the attention of the Advisory Board for funding consideration.
• Participate in and/or initiate on-going educational opportunities that inform and/or augment the knowledge, skills, and abilities of the Advisory Board to support the philanthropic work of the Tomberg Family Philanthropies.
• Advise the Tomberg Family on the selection of interns and consultants.

Preferred Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Philanthropy

• Knowledge of the philanthropic/nonprofit sector.
• Ability to remain objective about the funding requests received and in relationship to the Tomberg family philanthropic priorities.
• Effectively share relevant personal or professional expertise related to projects under review to aid in discussion and recommendations.

Organizational Knowledge

• Willingness to learn Tomberg Family Philanthropies policies, procedures, and philanthropic priorities.
• Willingness to consider historic grant making knowledge as it is related to the current grant making programs.

Relationships

• Ability to work and communicate in a professional and proactive manner with all people associated with the work of the Tomberg Family Philanthropies.
• Willingness to consider alternative points of view or avenues to problem solving.

Communication

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to handle conflict, confrontation, and negotiation.

Process Analysis

• Ability to identify possible improvements to Tomberg Family Philanthropies procedures and work flows.

Risk Assessment

• Ability to conceptualize, communicate, and/or navigate the various risks and opportunities in funding requests.

Welcomed But Not Required Qualifications

• Has lived experience in one or more of the of the funding priorities of Tomberg Family Philanthropies.
• Has subject matter expertise in a relevant field, discipline, or profession that would support the deliberation and decision-making of the Advisory Board team.

Required Qualifications

• Has computer skills, competencies, and access to Word and Excel.
• Has access and willingness to participate in virtual meetings using phone and video conferencing tools.

Funding Meeting

The Advisory Board holds a weekend-long in person funding meeting every other year. In alternate years, the funding meeting is conducted by Zoom.

Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

The Tomberg Family Philanthropies has been intentional over the years to recruit new Advisory Board members with a focus on living the commitment to diversity and inclusion. The Advisory Board acknowledges and honors the fundamental value and dignity of all individuals. The team encourages interested candidates who feel that they would bring perspective to this work to apply.

Contact Information

Please contact Charlie Tomberg at info@TombergPhilanthropies.org for more information about this opportunity. The application deadline is May 15, 2025.

About Us

The Tomberg Family Philanthropies is an umbrella organization for all the philanthropy of the Tomberg family. Our mission is to support well-run and effective programs that make a difference in the areas of poverty alleviation, the environment, health and education. Our primary grant making consists of a formal foundation, the Tomberg Family Foundation, and two separate donor-advised charitable funds, The Marty Tomberg Charitable Fund and the Philip and Helen Brecher Charitable Fund. The focus of the Tomberg Family Philanthropies is on supporting projects that help their recipients build capabilities themselves that will last far beyond the end of the specific project.. Our grants are normally between $5,000 and $20,000, and we have made approximately $2,700,000 in grants since the organization was established in 2007. You can learn more about us at http://www.tombergphilanthropies.org/.